The best part of story time was when the teacher finished reading a page aloud and rotated the book, revealing to an eager class the wide, glossy pages of illustrations illuminating what we’d just heard. John Locke understood this when he argued that pictures were essential to a child’s comprehension of a story as for children, showing is always better than telling.[1]

By the 1900s, the publishing industry had caught up with Locke’s observations and many publishing houses housed imprints dedicated to children’s publishing. Illustration now became a career in its own right, with artists like Kate Greenaway and Randolph Caldacott pushing their illustrations towards the more graphic and fantastical, defining the style of a children’s illustration in the wonder and fantasy of the stories they illustrated.[1] Then, there was a growing industry for novelty children’s books and toys, innovators like Lothar Meggendorfer creating elaborate pop-up books that blended illustration, literature, and play into one engaging package.

For a nation increasingly interested in the child’s wellbeing, children’s literature was a wonderful means of teaching safety and responsibility, and the storybook became a safe place of leisure and learning. Andrew Carnagie gifted a historic network of public library buildings, and these newly founded libraries took the chance to establish children’s reading rooms. Children’s publishers and librarians were often majority women, as the children’s story was considered “women’s work.” On the bright side, the women who guided this new industry held a very high standard for children’s books, and consequently prioritized high quality literature and illustration, a standard that serves as the foundation for the children’s books we have today.

As the market power of illustration increased, comic books became a playful, cheap alternative to the traditional storybook. Much more illustration-driven, the comic book was chided by publishing houses and many parents as being low-brow and escapist, yet these comics still got children reading and imagining, while also pushing graphic styles and visual storytelling farther along.

More contemporary studies show that illustrations are greatly helpful in a child’s retention of a story read aloud.[2] Illustrated stories give the child a distinct image of the story they are processing, tacking the ephemeral spoken word with a concrete, often very enjoyable image. In combining the two, storytelling becomes more approachable and imaginative for the child, creating a reading experience unlike the stuffy, black and white pages of an adult’s library book.

Illustration has become an art form in its own right. Artists like Roy Lichtenstein have pushed the ben day dots all the way to fine art fame, and cartoonists like Alan Moore and Alison Bechdel use the graphic novel form to tell lush, emotive, and not-so-appropriate-for-children stories. So next time you pick up a children’s book, make sure to spend some time appreciating the illustrations, if not, you’re only getting half the story.

Publishing Solutions Group

Publishing Solutions Group appreciates the exploration of visual storytelling across time and culture. As a team that values the power of both words and images, PSG is well-equipped to support similar projects with a full range of services—from editorial development and design to illustration and production—ensuring that content is both historically rich and visually engaging.

[1] https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-authors/article/91572-the-rise-ofthe-picture-book.html

[2] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4106274/

Photo by Annie Spratt for Unsplash.